The New York Times
"Founded shortly after 9/11, Musicians for Harmony has sponsored a
memorial concert every year since 2002. Luminaries taking part this year
include Leon Fleisher (in Brahms's Piano Trio in C), the Orion Quartet (playing
Mozart), the violinist Mark O'Connor (leading the Knights in a new piece
of his own) and Musique Sans Frontières, with a banjo player." —Anne
Midgette (9/8/06)

"Sounds Rising Above Prejudice" Musicians For Harmony was founded
after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in the hope that music might foster
understanding between cultures.... It presented its fifth [concert commemorating
9/11] on Monday evening at Merkin Concert Hall, a hefty program of classical
chamber music, with a folk- and jazz-tinged set by Musique Sans Frontières.
Mark O'Connor's 'Harmony,' composed for the occasion,...was an easygoing,
celebratory piece. The highlight for listeners with more straightforwardly
classical interests was an incandescent account of the Brahms Trio No. 2
(Op. 87). Leon Fleisher, in fine form, gave a passionate, nuanced account
of the piano line, and two members of the Guarneri Quartet (the violinist
Arnold Steinhardt and the cellist Peter Wiley) matched each other's phrasing
closely. The Orion String Quartet, joined by the Guarneri's violist, Michael
Tree, opened the concert with Mozart's Quintet in G (K. 516), in a reading
that basked in the transformation from courtliness to inner intensity peculiar
to Mozart's late works." —Allan Kozinn (9/13/06)

"This worthy organization was founded in a burst of musical idealism
in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Musicians donate their services for an annual
concert that commemorates the victims and raises money for peace-related
causes. This year, the program features an eclectic roster of classical and
world musicians." —Jeremy Eichler (9/9/05)

"There is an element in Iraq that is not happy that Iraqis
are playing Western music or teaching Western music to their children,’ said
Allegra Klein, a violinist. She founded a group called Musicians For Harmony,
in New York, which raised $1,000 for the Iraqi orchestra at a benefit concert.” —Barbara
Jespon (12/7/03)

The New Yorker
“Musicians For Harmony (Classical Music ‘Pick of the Week’).
The annual observances of the anniversary of the September 11th attacks have
given weight to what used to be a blank space in the classical schedule… This
valuable organization, formed in the wake of 9/11, brings a diverse group
of musicians to the stage of Merkin Concert Hall for some unexpected collaborations.” —Russell
Platt (9/4/06)

"This impromptu fall concert, first offered in the wake of 9/11,
has become an annual tradition that aims to bridge the gap between the musical
styles of East and West.” —Russell Platt
(9/12/05)

New York Magazine
“Musicians For Harmony (recommended). Music collective
created shortly after 9/11 in response to the attacks marks the anniversary
with an all-star concert to benefit education.” —Alicia
Zuckerman (9/4/06)

"Some excellent musicians gather for the fourth annual concert commemorating
the tragedy of 9/11, to bring comfort and encourage peace…. All proceeds
go to the Gezundheit! Institute, an arts-centered hospital that works to
promote peace, justice, and universal care.”—Alicia Zuckerman
(9/12/05)

New York Daily News"Music’s
Healing Touch.Finding
things that hold the world together can be harder than finding things to
blow it apart, which makes it heartening that five years after 9/11, ordinary
people keep bringing light from that day’s darkness. Next Monday, New
York-based Musicians For Harmony (MFH) will hold its fifth annual Sept. 11 ‘Concert
for Peace’ at 7:30 p.m. in Merkin Hall. Highlights include the premiere
of violin virtuoso Mark O’Connor’s ‘Harmony’ with
the musical group the Knights, and that work neatly reflects MFH’s
goal of blending musical styles from bluegrass and classical to world folk
and chamber… finding in music a commonality too often so tragically
absent in life.” —David Hinckley (9/6/06)

The New York Sun
“An International Music-Keeping Force. Like many New
Yorkers, Allegra Klein, a violinist and arts administrator, wanted to do
something to help after the terrorist attacks five years ago… Ms.
Klein’s efforts
grew into Musicians for Harmony, a group formed to promote cultural understanding
through music. The organization, whose players donate their services, will
hold its fifth annual ‘Concert for Peace’ tonight at Merkin Concert
Hall… In the future, the group hopes to expand to other cities, as
well as to present more concerts by Musique Sans Frontières (pictured
left). It is also launching an afterschool program for Brooklyn middle school
students this fall. And Ms Klein remains optimistic in her belief in the
healing power of music. ‘It does foster peace,’ she said. ‘I
truly believe that.’ " —Roberta Hershenson (9/11/06)

New York Times“Cultures in Combination
to Commemorate a Tragedy. While many countries try to stem the flow
of anything foreign (whether people or ideas) across their borders, musical
boundaries have become so porous that it now feels natural to see a pipa
alongside Western strings.… The mesmerizing pipa player Wu Man presented… the
premiere of “Soliloquio Serrano” by Gabriela Lena Frank, [who]
provided Ms. Wu with a virtuosic, expressive tapestry inspired by the harawi,
a melancholy song genre from the Peruvian Andes.… The Shanghai Quartet
gave a stellar account of Ravel’s String Quartet in F, and its passionate
playing – driven, elegant and nuanced – inspired energetic clapping
by the audience between movements.” —Vivian
Schweitzer (9/13/07)

Time Out New York
“DON’T MISS... Musicians For Harmony: East
meets West in this benefit for an Iraqi orchestra and the families of Sept.
11 victims. Any way you look at it, this is a pretty amazing event.” —Steve
Smith (9/4/03)

Strings Magazine
“The Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra, which created
such a stir last year during its debut US concert tour, is prospering thanks,
in part, to the generosity of stateside benefactors and the New York-based
charity Musicians For Harmony, Inc." —Greg
Cahill (Dec. 2004)

Strad Magazine
“Musicians For Harmony, founded in the wake of 9/11,
seeks to establish a bridge between the art music of the Middle East and
Western classical music. Merkin Hall was nearly full for its fourth annual
concert (13 September). The Shanghai Quartet opened the programme with Janácek’s ‘Kreutzer
Sonata’ Quartet [which showcased] their beautiful tone and phrasing… The
concluding item, Beethoven’s Trio in E-flat Major Op. 70, No. 2, found
two members of the Guarneri Quartet, violinist Arnold Steinhardt and cellist
Peter Wiley, joining pianist Anna Polonsky. They might consider playing more
trio concerts as they seemed well suited to each other...” —Dennis
Rooney (Dec. 2005)

Big Apple Parents
"September 11th’s ‘Concert for Peace’ definitely
has a youth-oriented theme… [Their] beneficiary will be Musicians
For Harmony’s brand-new Educational Workshop Division, a program offering
after-school workshops on world music instruments to students in New York
City public schools.” (Sept. 2006)

Classical Domain
"Musicians for Harmony began five years ago with a
different approach to commemorate the attacks of 9/11. The evenings revolve
around renowned classical and world musicians, playing within their discipline
and together across musical boundaries... Founder Allegra Klein is attempting
to redefine what a memorial response should be in a world where contemplation
loses out to competing agendas. Klein and [artistic director] Patrick Derivaz
have found a way to keep a link between cultures, while the world and the
media are focused on creating distinctions." —Gregg Deering (Sept.
2006)